Power Drill

[jedi]

I have a project coming up in which I will have to remove about 8,000 3" screws that were drilled into some metal floor plates.

We tried removing some by hand but alas it's extremely difficult and will take way too long. The screw goes thru the metal plate and then into a metal track on the floor as well.
We tried using an old corded electrical drill but it was having a lot of trouble getting them out and we ended up overheating the drill.

So INGO what would you recommend?
I'm incline to do a corded tool cause I have no faith on battery power tools but I'm willing to buy both to try out.
There are outlets along the hallway and we have extension cords so no worries about power.

Thanks

 

[actaeon277]

Overheat the drill? What was it, from the 1950s?

A battery should be fine. Just don't use NiCad batteries.

 

[actaeon277]

If it's that bad, use 2 drills. Run till hot, then swap to 2nd drill. Repeat.

 

[jedi]

lets say the drill you can see the sparks from the inside of the motor and it has the montgamary ward sticker on the box.
i think its from the 60s. donot use power tools here much.

 

[rvb]

impact driver or drill/driver.

eg
https://www.lowes.com/pd/DEWALT-20-...d-Impact-Driver-1-Battery-Included/1000136219

more torque than a regular drill and less likely to strip out screw heads.

lithium batteries are fine, they usually come w/ two and a dead one will be charged before the one you're using dies...
(edit: noticed the example I linked to only has one battery. many come w/ two)

-rvb

 

[rvb]

I got this one last summer before a project requiring lots o deck screws. I was leading a group of middle school-ers building a wheel-chair ramp. This made running the screws in so much easier for the kids than the previous year. The impact driver takes a lot less down-force an less stripping of screw heads.

I got this particular one because I already had the regular drill version that used the same batts, so now I have 4 batts and 2 chargers

https://www.menards.com/main/tools-...689-c-9072.htm?tid=1320887128554619990&ipos=1

-rvb

 

[spencer rifle]

Cordless: DeWalt 18v
Corded: Milwaukee or Makita

And lots of spare bits.

 

[Rookie]

impact driver or drill/driver.

eg
https://www.lowes.com/pd/DEWALT-20-...d-Impact-Driver-1-Battery-Included/1000136219

more torque than a regular drill and less likely to strip out screw heads.

lithium batteries are fine, they usually come w/ two and a dead one will be charged before the one you're using dies...
(edit: noticed the example I linked to only has one battery. many come w/ two)

-rvb

He's right. An impact driver kind of stutters as it's working which lessens the chance of stripping screws.

 

[OutdoorDad]

https://www.cpopowertools.com/dewal...whEQ6iSwqyj6qBnmeNWYaV1siKNWmQqBoC-d4QAvD_BwE

wow thats a long link! (Edit. Thankfully the link shrunk).
But it’s what I used to replace a deck at the beach with bleached wood and rusted screws.
Had three batteries
Make sure you set the torque and clutch to give you enough to twist w/o camming the screw heads.
And a supply of properly sized bits. < super important.

 

[Goodcat]

Definitely impact drill, not regular. I’d recommend dewalt 20v impact. If you need two batteries, some kits for $200 for with impact, a regular drill, 2 batteries and charger.

 

[GLOCKMAN23C]

Makita or Milwaukee impact driver.

 

[bwframe]

Wonder if the 12 volt Makita impact driver would work to pull those 3" screws out?

The small size/weight is sure easy on the hands on big jobs. And the 12 volt batteries load just like a G19 magazine.

 

[CampingJosh]

As others have said, you really want an impact driver for this job.

Don't call your old drill junk just yet though; it may be easy to replace the brushes for < $20, which will fix the sparking that you are seeing. And once that's done, it'll be 3x the drill you would buy for < $20.

 

[CampingJosh]

Also, make sure your bits are rated for impact use. I recommend Milwaukee bits.

 

[Mark 1911]

Mentioned several times already, but get an impact drill. You will go through some bits, don't be afraid to change them, avoids stripping out the screw heads.

 

[churchmouse]

My cordless 18V Milwaukee kicks but over our 18V DeWalt.
In that many screws you will get it hot and blow through some battery's. Have spares on charge and when you fell it slow down swap battery's right then. It will over heat faster on low batts

 

[Butch627]

I have never heard anyone who has used a 18v Milwaukee next to a Dewalt recommend the Dewalt. For that many fasteners that may be tricky I would recommend buying a kit with drill and impact. Use a sharp pointed awl or pick to clean out the screw head to get a better bite and try using the drill as its clutch settings are more forgiving than the impact and less likely to strip the head. Use compressed air to blow debris out of the screw head, if you don't have a compressor use canned air from Office Depot. Buy quality screw tips. An old timers trick is to use valve grinding compound on the screw tip to get a better bite. Put as much down force on the tool as you possibly can, I don't mean like 20 pounds, I mean all of your body weight you can. Research ACR bit tips. You will have to probably buy them online but they have been in use for decades and help a great deal. I am not recommending these but they are an example of a acr tip for the uninformed or Dewalt guys who need to get up to speed with those in the know. https://www.amazon.com/3-80202-Phillips-ACR-Bit-6pk/dp/B002UZAXX2

 

[russc2542]

Wonder if the 12 volt Makita impact driver would work to pull those 3" screws out?

The small size/weight is sure easy on the hands on big jobs. And the 12 volt batteries load just like a G19 magazine.

12v is enough for 3" screws in plywood/pine but I wouldn't do longer. my milwaukee 12v Li-ion could charge the batteries as fast as I could drain them doing so but every so often would delay starting charging due to battery temp.

I will also put a plug in for the smaller tools in that I was using my M12 all day (14-16 hrs) and my buddy had the 24v dewalt with a metal gearbox and was crying after 1/2 hr that his arm was cramping up.

The impact tools will strip screws a lot less than a conventional drill but, depending on what you're working on, may be deafening. On the job mentioned above, I had to use the conventional drill because the plywood panels we were attaching the 2x4s to would resonate like a speaker to the impact gun.

My cordless 18V Milwaukee kicks but over our 18V DeWalt.
In that many screws you will get it hot and blow through some battery's. Have spares on charge and when you fell it slow down swap battery's right then. It will over heat faster on low batts

Be wary of brand comparisons like that. When researching my Milwaukee 18v tools, I found they had 3-5 power ratings for many of the tools, the lowest of which (usually on sales/black friday) was 1/2 as much go as the best. comparing the lowest Mil to the best dewalt would probably send the argument the other way.

You won't load the batteries enough with 3" screws for heat to be a problem and they'll charge a lot faster than you can discharge them. The previously mentioned job with the M12s I could drain them as fast as they charged (about 1/2hr) and did get a heat-shutdown 2-3 times all day.

Li-based battery tools generally shut down before the voltage drops much (gradual loss of power/speed particularly pronounced in earlier battery tools) because if you discharge them enough to drop the voltage it's a lot worse than any other battery chemistry. When the tool says that it's drained, chemically the battery is still at maybe 50% capability but the chip knows if it goes further it'll damage the cells. Same as my wife's Prius: it tries to keep the charge between 20-80% on the display but 0-100% on the display is actually 40-80% of what the battery is capable of. using the narrow window keeps temps under control and extends lifespan.

 

[jedi]

thanks all for the info.
i really dislike battery anything but sadly it looks like that is the only stuff companies sell now a days.

right now im leaning to pick 2.
either the milkwaukee screwdriver power unit, 6792, or the adjustable cluth screwdriver, 6580

AND
milwaukee, m18 fuel surge 1/4" hex hysraulic driver, 2760, or
milwaukee, m18 fuel 1/4" hex impqct driver, 2753.

 

[actaeon277]

I see them. If that's what you want, look harder.